• MIDWEST REGIONAL

It's been a long time since North Carolina State was mentioned in the same breath with the elite programs in the nation - let alone its own state.

Now, a new coach and a new attitude have the Wolfpack faithful harkening back to the glory days of David Thompson and Jim Valvano.

Lorenzo Brown hit three free throws in the final 10.6 seconds and North Carolina State returned to the round of 16 with a 66-63 upset of third-seeded Georgetown in the NCAA tournament on Sunday in Columbus, Ohio.

"When I went to Alabama as the head coach at the age of 33, John Wooden told me one time, he said, 'Coach, don't give them too much too fast. They might start expecting that every year,'" first-year Wolfpack coach Mark Gottfried said with a grin.

Then, with impeccable timing, he added: "Well, we failed in that category already."

The Wolfpack (24-12) will play Purdue or Kansas on Friday in St. Louis.

A lowly 11th seed coming in, they had to survive a furious comeback by the Hoyas (24-9) that ended when Jason Clark's hurried 3-point attempt from the right wing was off the mark at the buzzer.

"We pushed the ball up the court, tried to get a last shot," Clark said, his eyes brimming with tears. "I felt like it had a chance, but it didn't."

It's a return to the big stage for a program that has been lost in the rather large shadows cast by neighboring powers Duke and North Carolina. The Wolfpack won national titles in 1974 with Thompson and in 1983 on Lorenzo Charles' dramatic last-second putback of Dereck Whittenburg's wild shot, leading to coach Valvano's memorable celebration.

But maybe the new Wolfpack have turned a corner.

"We always talk about how we have such a great history at NC State," Gottfried said. "But it's also time to build some new history."

C.J. Williams, Scott Wood and C.J. Leslie each had 14 points, and Brown added 12 for the Wolfpack, who earned their first trip to the round of 16 since 2005.

North Carolina 87, Creighton 73: John Henson had 13 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in his return from a wrist injury, and the Tar Heels beat Creighton in Greensboro, N.C.

Kendall Marshall added 18 points and 11 assists for the top-seeded Tar Heels (31-5), who reached the round of 16 for a record 25th time. North Carolina got off to a fast start and built a 15-point lead in the first half, then kept control and pushed the margin to 19 after the break on the way to its second straight double-digit victory in the Midwest Regional.

Doug McDermott scored 20 points for the eight-seeded Bluejays (29-6), who shot 41 percent and couldn't keep up with the hot-shooting Tar Heels.

Ohio 62, South Florida 56: At Nashville, Tenn., Walter Offutt scored 21 points, D.J. Cooper had 19 and Ohio (29-7) beat South Florida (22-14) to advance to the regional semifinals.

The Bobcats will play No. 1 seed North Carolina in their second trip to the round of 16.

Ohio trailed by two when Offutt swished a 3-pointer, launching a 10-0 run for the Bobcats. A pair of free throws by Cooper made it 54-46 with 3:28 left.

The Bobcats had a 59-53 lead when Toarlyn Fitzpatrick connected for South Florida's first 3-pointer of the half. But Cooper went 3 for 4 from the line while the Bulls missed three shots in the final 36 seconds.

Kansas 63, Purdue 60: At Omaha, Neb., Elijah Johnson scored 18 points, including the go-ahead basket in the final minute, and No. 2 seed Kansas (29-6) rallied to beat Robbie Hummel and No. 10 seed Purdue (22-13).

Thomas Robinson managed 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Jayhawks, who trailed nearly the entire game but still managed to advance to St. Louis. They'll play No. 11 seed North Carolina State in the Midwest Regional semifinals.

Purdue was clinging to a 60-59 lead and had the ball and under a minute remaining when Lewis Jackson, the shot clock winding down, lost control at the top of the key. Johnson picked it up and went the other way for the go-ahead layup with 23.3 seconds left.

• EAST REGIONAL

Cincinnati 62, Florida St. 56: At Nashville, Tenn., Dion Dixon stole the ball and dunked to put Cincinnati ahead for good with 1:32 left, and the Bearcats (26-10) edged out Florida State (25-10) to reach their first regional semifinal in the NCAA tournament since 2001.

Cincinnati will play No. 2 seed Ohio State in Boston on Thursday night in the East, joining Xavier and Ohio in the second weekend.

• SOUTH REGIONAL

Xavier 70, Lehigh 58: At Greensboro, N.C., senior center Kenny Frease scored a career-high 25 points to go with 12 rebounds and Xavier (22-12) knocked off upset-minded Lehigh (27-7) to advance to the regional semifinals for the fourth time in five years.

Xavier moves on to play No. 3 seed Baylor on Friday in the South Regional at Atlanta.

Lehigh, which stunned No. 2 seed Duke on Friday, was looking to become the first 15 seed to make it to the tournament's second weekend. But the 7-foot Frease stood in the way.

The Musketeers held C.J. McCollum, the nation's fifth-leading scorer, to 14 points on 5-of-22 shooting and overcame a 15-point first-half deficit. Mackey McKnight had 20 points for Lehigh, which tied a Patriot League record for wins in a season.

• WEST REGIONAL

Michigan State 65, Saint Louis 61: Draymond Green scored 16 points with 13 rebounds and set up Keith Appling's crucial 3-pointer with 1:34 left, giving the top-seeded Spartans a win over Saint Louis in Columbus, Ohio.

Michigan State will play No. 4 seed Louisville in the West Regional semifinals Thursday in Phoenix.

Appling added 19 points for the Spartans (29-7), who had to scrap their way past the ninth-seeded Billikens (26-8).

Florida 84, Norfolk St. 50: Kenny Boynton scored 20 points and the balanced Gators (25-10) routed the 15th-seeded Spartans (26-10) in Omaha, Neb.

Norfolk State shook up the West Regional when it upset No. 2 seed Missouri 86-84 on Friday, and was trying to become the first 15 seed to reach the round of 16.

Florida put a quick end to that idea, making five 3-pointers during a 25-0 run that made it 29-6 midway through the first half.

The seventh-seeded Gators made it to the regional semifinals for the sixth time in 12 NCAA tournament appearances under coach Billy Donovan. They will play No. 3 seed Marquette on Thursday in Phoenix after their second straight runaway win.